J Cardiovasc Surg
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Review Case Reports
Homograft aortic root replacement for destructive valve endocarditis. The benefit of an in-house homograft bank.
This report concerns the surgical treatment of a 45-year old patient with active staphylococcus-endocarditis of the aortic valve which resulted in an aortic root abscess and consequently in a ventricular aortic discontinuity. A technique of homograft aortic root replacement after removal of all infected and necrotic areas is described. After a six month follow-up, the patient is asymptomatic (New York Heart Association functional class I) and shows no signs of recurrence of endocarditis. This case report makes the benefit of an in-house homograft-bank system obvious.